Boise State's Ashton Jeanty is chasing a spot in the College Football Playoff

Clinging to a five-point lead with 8:09 left in an important away game, Boise State got the ball on their own 14.

The opponent doesn't matter. In this situation, the Broncos are hard to beat with perhaps one of the five best running backs the sport has seen in the College Football Playoff era. The plan was simple: let the clock run, keep your distance and win. It was time for it Ashton Jeanty shine.

The game is on the line, Boise State head coach Spencer Danielson didn't even have to think. He kept feeding his Heisman Trophy hopeful. Even though UNLV did a better job than anyone throughout the game containing Jeanty, the Broncos leaned on him. In a 14-play drive with all time dead, Jeanty touched the ball eight times. Three of these plays were kneel downs.

Boise State 29, UNLV 24. Final.

Previously, this would have been a Friday night game reserved for college football only. Two undefeated teams in the Mountain West would have been an interesting game for those interested in conference championships. But this game in the 12-team College Football Playoff era? These were two teams that had more on their minds.

Now Boise State is the clear favorite from the Group of 5 to make the playoffs. Given what happened to the Broncos in the 2006 season, who could be a more fitting representative for the Group of 5 in the first year the sport is actually established on the field?

Before we delve into this, there is still a lot to do. The Broncos' future could include another game against these Rebels, who have now lost two games, both heartbreaking Friday night games with penalties that will keep their fans awake at night. But when it came to who was the better team that Friday night, it was undoubtedly the Broncos.

Entering the game, Jeanty had rushed for 1,120 yards and 16 touchdowns. In Boise State's first six games, Jeanty ran for 185 yards or more five times. In a last second defeat against Oregon – now the No. 1 team in the country – in Week 2, Jeanty ran the ball 25 times for 192 yards and three touchdowns.

Against the Rebels, Jeanty had 33 carries for 128 yards and a touchdown. In a year where Jeanty is challenging Barry Sanders' single-season rushing record, a great game for others feels like a bad game for him. UNLV certainly would have taken that stat if it had offered it before the game.

But being a top player is about more than 80-yard touchdown runs. It's about making it big when your team needs you most. That's what Jeanty does.

On this last ride he consistently fought for extra distance. He rarely went down on first contact. And after playing an entire game where it looked like he needed every ounce of UNLV energy to bring him to the ground, it was just too much to ask of the Rebels to stop him on that final drive. There won't be an ESPN SportsCenter Top 10 game, but the overall performance in this game – arguably the biggest of the season for the Broncos – was Heisman worthy. With Boise State trailing by a point, Boise State had a tough five-yard run from the UNLV six that got the Broncos to the edge of the goal line that most running backs wouldn't have made. That was his only touchdown run, which ultimately led to the victory. Jeanty showed up. Again. And again. And again.

You have to ask yourself this question: Which running backs would you take over for Jeanty since the 2014 season? Christian McCaffery? Saquon Barkley? Derrick Henry? Ezekiel Elliott? Travis Etienne? Najee Harris? Nick Chubb? Jonathan Taylor? Bijan Robinson? Am I forgetting someone?

The NFL careers of some of the players mentioned above make this decision even more difficult. But Jeanty undoubtedly belongs in this conversation.

What makes this Boise State team truly dangerous. Not just in the Mountain West race, but also in one of those College Football Playoff games in December.

For Boise State, the job isn’t done yet. Remaining undefeated in conference play and winning the conference title game won't be easy. But with five games remaining in the season against San Diego State, Nevada, San Jose State, Wyoming And Oregon Statethere is no speed limit on this schedule that, on paper, poses a greater challenge than the one UNLV presented Friday night.

There are still teams in the Group of 5 that will compete for Boise State. The Army and Navy are both still undefeated. We'll find out how real on Saturday marine is when it faces Notre Dame. And if UNLV comes out on top with two losses and beats Boise State — in Boise — in the Mountain West title game, the Rebels could have a fight come December. Remember, the Mountain West Championship Game will be hosted by the team with the highest winning percentage in conference play, which will likely be Boise State.

But if Boise State makes it? How appropriate would that be?

These Broncos have been the Group of 5 class for most of college football's modern era.

In 2006, the Broncos had a 13-0 record. The season ended with one of the most exciting games in college football history: a win Oklahoma 43-42 in overtime in the Fiesta Bowl. You know, the famous game with the iconic Hook-and-Ladder and Statue of Liberty plays that you've seen a million times in the nearly 20 years since.

At the end of that season, Boise State was unable to compete on the field for a national title. There were two defeats this season Florida won everything, beaten Ohio State 41-14 in the BCS National Championship Game. Funnily enough, the national title game was played in Phoenix, the same city where the Broncos wowed the world against Oklahoma.

This season is different. Boise State will decide its fate on the field.

With Jeanty on this team, who knows what could happen.